Download The Han Dynasty of China: A Chinese Golden Age

The Han Dynasty of China:
A Chinese Golden Age
(206 BCE-220 CE)
Han dynasty was China’s second
imperial dynasty
– 206 (or 202) BCE-220 CE
• Over 400 years
Liu Bang – Emperor Gaozu of Han
• Civil war
– Two strong leaders
• Xiang Yu (aristocratic general)
• Liu Bang (peasant-class
general under Xiang Yu)
• 202 BCE
– Liu Bang beat Xiang Yu for
good
Liu Bang reigned
202 BCE-195 BCE.
Emperor Wudi
• Wudi lived 141-87 BCE
• Consolidated central power (land, food
supply)
• Confucianism made official government
philosophy.
Social Classes under the Han
Emperor
Governors
and Kings
Nobles, Scholars,
and State Officials
Peasants (Farmers)
Artisans and Merchants
Soldiers
Slaves
Revival of the Family
• Confucianism taught:
• Children must obey parents.
• Wives must obey husbands.
• Families should obey fathers =
Citizens should obey emperor.
Art & Literature
• Painting
• Figure painting/portraits.
• Literature
• Historical recordings.
• Poetry
• Fu- Long
• Shi - Short
Han Dynasty Inventions
• Paper
• Acupuncture
• Use needles at certain body
points to relieve pain.
• Seismograph
• Measured strength of
earthquakes.
• Sundial
• Told time of day.(clock)
Technology under the Han
List in order from greatest to least impact.
Paper
Collar harness
Plow
• Invented in 105 CE
• Books became inexpensive to produce; expanded education
• Bureaucracy grew and became more efficient
• Horses could carry heavier loads
• Best harness available at the time worldwide
• The Chinese made one with two blades
• Much more efficient
Wheelbarrow
• Invented independently (Greeks had invented as well)
• Central wheel and axle let Chinese wheelbarrows carry very
heavy weights
Waterwheel
• Used to power things such as the bellows for smelting iron
Commerce and Trade under the
Han
• Growth of trade along the Silk Roads
Civil Service under the Han
• Over 130,000 employees
• Civil service exams
– Confucian principles described the qualities that
emperors wanted in civil servants
– Wudi set up a Confucian-themed university.
– Formal examinations in Confucianism, history, law,
and literature for civil service positions
– Theoretically a merit-based system
• But poor could not afford to educate their children
– In effect until the downfall of China’s last dynasty in
1912